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King's researchers working with Mayor of London to improve pollution forecasting

30 January, 2018

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today announced a new partnership with researchers from the Environmental Research Group (ERG) at King's which will improve the way the public are informed about incidents of poor air quality in the capital.

Scientists from King’s will provide continuous monitoring using the existing London Air Quality Network and a forecast of air pollution in London, delivering alerts to the Mayor’s office and general public as required.

They will also directly notify a wider group of London stakeholders who are most vulnerable to the impacts of poor air, including schools, of episodes of moderate and high pollution. It is hoped these alerts will be rolled out more widely in future to include care homes and GP surgeries in the near future.

To ensure greater coordination and consistency in alerts messaging, the King's forecasters will also consider forecasts from other forecasters as part of their analysis.

Timothy Baker, Principal Air Quality Analyst at the Environmental Research Group said: ‘This new role for King's recognises that our 25 year history of monitoring across London, in partnership with London’s boroughs, has given us an unrivalled understanding of air pollution in the Capital.

‘Providing accurate, up-to-date information to the public is a central component of King's civic duty, and this exciting new partnership with The Mayor of London will enable that message to be delivered directly to those most affected by air pollution.’